Development Of Indigenous Technology Research Articles

Coupling the Power of Artificial Intelligence on Human and Climate Change Impacts Mitigation in Oban Biodiversity Hotspot Loss, Nigeria

The current human efforts to grapples with the pressing challenges of human and climate change impacts on biodiversity loss hotspots have not yield the expected outcome, thereby creating an urgent need for a more sustainable and innovative approach to mitigate the threats from local to global level. This paper explores the various applications of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in monitoring endangered animal species and forest degradation within the Oban Division of the Cross River National Park with a view to boosting sustainable species conservation and averting biodiversity hotspot loss. It evaluates the key potentials and real benefits of AI-driven technologies in optimizing species protection and conservation efforts in the hotspot. It also explores the challenges and opportunities associated with the adoption of AI in biodiversity hotspot monitoring and conservation; and propose recommendations for future research and policy interventions. The paper adopts a qualitative method in reviewing existing studies of AI applications in species conservation and narrows it down to the Oban biodiversity hotspot. The results show that species in the study area are under serious human and nature-induced threats. Also, though AI possesses one of the most intuitive and environmental-friendly options for species monitoring and protection, its application in the protected hotspot is still at zero level due to limited capacity and awareness. We recommend AI driven capacity building via staff training, as well as provision of place-centered AI-technologies to aid accurate monitoring and avert species extinction in the Oban hotspot. Also, local content development and promotion of indigenous technologies, ideas, policies and programmes should be urgently prioritized.

The Impact of International Technology Transfer on Technology Gap in the Context of Developing Countries

The study aimed at the effect of International Technology Transfer (ITT) on the technology gap in developing countries. The study investigated the effects of ITT on the policies and strategies that can be implemented to improve ITT in developing countries. The study was anchored on dependency theory. The study employed a qualitative method. The study’s narrative review was chosen as it is an evidence-based review that concentrates on previous literature. The study used a search strategy. Previous empirical studies were screened using Prisma Flow-diagram. It was found that the effects of ITTs on the technology gap in developing countries remain a subject of debate and investigation in academic research and that empirical evidence from different studies has shown mixed findings. The study concluded that ITT could positively and negatively affect the technology gap in developing countries. The study recommended that developing countries prioritize investment in education and human capital development to build a skilled workforce capable of utilizing and adapting to new technologies. In addition, they should encourage local innovation and development of indigenous technology to reduce dependency on foreign technology and promote sustainable development.

Indigenous Technologies and Flexible Design for Energy Efficiency in Residential Buildings: A Case Study Approach

This paper explores the application and future development of indigenous technologies and flexible design in reducing energy consumption in residential buildings. The paper introduces the principles, applicability, and comparison of indigenous technologies and flexible design with modern technologies, and examines the sources and current status of energy consumption in residential buildings. The study details how indigenous technologies and flexible design can be combined and explores their application in residential buildings and how they can improve the energy efficiency, adaptability, and quality of life of residential buildings. Through case studies, the paper presents examples of residential buildings that have adopted indigenous technologies and flexible designs, exploring their effectiveness in terms of energy consumption and the impact on user experience and quality of life. Finally, the paper discusses the implications and direction of this approach for future buildings.

Technical Efficiency of Sweet Potato Production: A Stochastic Frontier Analysis

The level of yield among sweet potato farmers is on a decline; low output and yield differences was observed, indicating the existence of inefficiency in production systems and variations in input utilization. Efficiency in resource use must be sustained in order to improve productivity and maximize farm output. This study therefore analyzed the technical efficiency of sweet potato production. Multi-stage sampling techniques were adopted in selecting 94 respondents for this study. Data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics and stochastic frontier production function. The socioeconomic variables of the respondents affected their farm efficiency and level of farm output. The estimated ratio of the L/R test was 0.579; indicating a goodness of fit of the frontier model and thus a rejection of the null hypothesis. The coefficients of sweet potato seeds (vines) (0.362) and labour (0.439) were positive and statistically significant at 5% level of probability, while the coefficients of farm size (-1.333), fertilizer (-0.452) and herbicides (-0.766) were negative but statistically significant at 5% level of probability. The inefficiency model revealed that the coefficient of farm capital (-0.172), education (-2.281), access to credit (-0.472), farming experience (-0.639), extension contact (-0.733) and membership of cooperatives (-0.396) were negative and statistically significant at 5% level of probability. The mean technical efficiency was 0.62 (62%) implying that the sweet potato farmers in the study area were not producing at optimal capacity. The constraints identified significantly affected sweet potato production in the study area. Subsidizing input costs; sensitizing farmers on appropriate farming practices, cooperative formation and efficiency in resource utilization; improving access to agricultural inputs, technology, farm capital, credit and extension services, market linkages, farm labour supply and the development of indigenous technologies in sweet potato production are strongly recommended.

Relative Innovation Index: State of Patent Examination in India

For the second decade in the 21st Century, the encouraging steps taken to foster the innovation environment in India have started bearing fruits by way of the introduction of new indigenous technologies1 in the market, specifically in the area of generic medicines as well as in engineering sectors with automotive as a prime example.2 Several initiatives3 have been taken by the Government of India (GOI) to increase Research and Development (R&D) activity in India, for example, in providing tax holidays and exemptions have resulted in the development of indigenous technologies and increased patent filing. However, the prime concern now is to handle such a large number of patent applications and disposal of patent applications by the Indian Patent Offices. The author uses the empirical investigation to identify the motive of legal provisions in the Indian Patent Act, 1970 and employs a quantitative method of research to the data published by the Indian Patent. This paper evaluates the disposal mechanism in terms of a number of First Examination Reports (FERs) issued across various years by the Indian Patent Officeand gives a performance indicator on its working efficiency. The study gives an overview of the Patent Prosecution Procedure for the disposal of patents in India. Also, the paper studies the disposal of patent applications by the four regional Patent Offices in India. The paper would focus on analysing the disposal of patents and its impact on the global innovation index published by the WIPO.

Development of SOA-based WebGIS framework for education sector

The applications of Geographic Information System (GIS) in the education sector are increasing day by day. The geospatial information can be published, discovered, searched, analyzed, and displayed through webGIS-based applications. Lack of an open source geospatial resource-based platform for data sharing, discovery, and service delivery in the education sector is a critical issue in managing the education of large population in India. The use of open geospatial consortium (OGC) developed open standards for geospatial web services will result in the interoperability of geographic information. In this paper, an interoperable and secure service-oriented architecture (SOA)-based webGIS framework is developed to handle the technical and non-technical issues in the education sector. In this research work, spatial analysis on schools is performed along with the design and development of webGIS framework using SOA, OGC standards, and open source software. The developed webGIS framework, acronym as EduGIS, is interoperable and secure which is implemented for the education sector. The development of webGIS framework is based upon three-tier thin client architecture. The present research work has investigated an optimized adoption of various free and open source software like Quantum GIS, GeoServer, Apache Tomcat, PostGIS, and uDig in different tiers of developed webGIS framework. The interoperability of developed EduGIS ensures that it can be shared across different technologies, data, platforms, and organizations. The development of open source-based webGIS framework will serve as a means of reducing licensing costs in developing countries like India and will promote indigenous technological development for primary education in rural areas.

Value co‐creation between foreign firms and indigenous small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in Kazakhstan's oil and gas industry: The role of information technology spillovers

AbstractStudy related to the extractive sector still plays a limited role in the mainstream international business (IB) and management literature, with even less focus on ongoing liberalization and digitalization in the industry. This article was motivated by the question of how collaboration between foreign and indigenous oil and gas (O&G) companies can support small‐sized and medium‐sized indigenous technological development. The main contribution of this article is the development of a model that explains how different actors can cocreate value in the ecosystem of the O&G industry through digital technologies. A three‐stage qualitative–interpretive method based on interviews with industry experts was adopted to build three vignette case studies. This article proposes what companies and the government could do to increase the competitiveness of the local economy, diversify from O&G into high technological industries, and support industrial development through information and communication technologies (ICT).

Prospects of decentralized renewable energy to improve energy access: A resource-inventory-based analysis of South Africa

Approximately 1.5 million South African households (~16 million total) are still relying on paraffin, fuel wood, candle, and coal for their daily quota of energy. Although coal-based power generation is apparently easier for coal-rich South Africa, an increasing share of large-scale renewable energy (solar and wind) is mandated due to environmental concerns. In this work, prospect of two distributed renewable resources (farm manure and solar radiation) for a decentralized renewable energy (DRE) program targeting quality energy access for a non-electrified population, was investigated based on ground-level assessments. The potential demands of electrical and thermal energy were assessed and compared to the anticipated decentralized generation of biogas and solar photovoltaic power for all nine provinces of South Africa. In all provinces, except Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, farm manure could support the thermal energy requirements for cooking and water and space heating of non-electrified households. Further, farm manure could support the combined thermal and electrical loads of Western Cape and Free State. Similarly, decentralized solar photovoltaic power can support electrical loads in all provinces. A well-planned DRE program integrated with the development of indigenous technologies and local enterprises would benefit the economically and socially vulnerable households of South Africa, apart from fulfilling the additional energy demand and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The dominance of foreign capital and its impact on indigenous technology development in the production of liquefied natural gas in Nigeria

SUMMARYThe briefing argues that the Nigerian economy is foreign capital driven and that the rentier character of the state has facilitated dominance of foreign capital in the gas sector. Furthermore, that the control of the sector and consequent reliance on foreign technology have distorted and stagnated local initiatives toward development of indigenous technology in the production of liquefied natural gas.

When technology, science and culture meet: insights from ancient Chinese technology

This paper draws together two important agendas in science education. The first is making science education more inclusive such that students from non-Western or indigenous cultures can benefit from culturally relevant curricula. The second is integrating technology into the curriculum under the umbrella of Science–Technology–Society (STS) education to embrace the social aspects of science, with technology serving as a bridge. The advancement of the first agenda is hindered by the pursuance by both Western and non-Western societies of narrow cultural and practical goals without considering the development of science and technology from a cross-cultural perspective. The second agenda is limited by the misconception that technology is applied science, leading to the exclusion from STS discussions of pre-science or indigenous technologies developed by non-Western cultures. Through selected case studies of the evolution of Chinese traditional technologies and their interaction with science, this paper offers a perspective from the Far East, and argues for situating culturally responsive science education in broader historical and cross-cultural contexts to acknowledge the multi-cultural contributions to science and technology. A form of cross-cultural STS education is advanced, encompassing the cultural basis of technological developments, technology diffusion, interactions of traditional technology with science, and the potential development of traditional or indigenous technologies. This approach provides a bridge between the existing universal science education paradigm promoted in the West and the different forms of multi-cultural education advocated by indigenous science educators. To translate theory into practice, a conceptual framework is proposed in which the essential transdisciplinary knowledge base, curricular goals, and pedagogical approaches are embedded.

Examining the Shift to Services: Malaysia and China Compared

ABSTRACTWhen do countries that pursue industrialisation through the development of their manufacturing sector shift to services? Does the shift take place because manufacturing development has matured with the development of indigenous technology? What is the role of policy in this shift? Understanding this shift is crucial due to the changing nature and role of services in development and its association with deindustrialisation. This article seeks to compare Malaysia and China’s shift from manufacturing to services and the challenges and prospects of such a shift. The main findings indicate that Malaysia’s shift occurred earlier than China’s and was prompted by the failure of its manufacturing sector to deepen as it has not produced any world-class domestic technology firms. China’s more recent shift is associated with on-going upgrading in its manufacturing sector while some global domestic technology firms have also emerged. Both countries used similar policies to drive this shift in response to domestic and external changes. The services sectors of both countries are still dominated by domestic market orientated, labour-intensive services. Developing competitive knowledge-intensive services in both countries will need a reform of their state-owned enterprises and the production of more talents that are needed for these types of services.

Scientific collaboration in indigenous knowledge in context: Insights from publication and co-publication network analysis

Scientific collaboration has been cited as a major stimulant in innovation and a major component for the development of indigenous technologies particularly in countries invested in rapid technological catch-up in East Asia and Southeast Asia. In this study, we assess the comparative advantage of the selected economies and employ a network perspective to drill down to the case study of indigenous knowledge, using the traditional medicine sector – a focus indigenous industry of several Asian economies – to understand how the State, Industry and Universities link to drive innovation in this growing field. From our selected economies in East Asia, we identified three network models that describe the outcomes of the innovation strategies in place, a network-based extension of previous studies. We examine publication output and co-publication network structures to investigate the comparative advantage and composition of the research networks in the various economies. Our results suggest that the university-centric model remains the most popular, with Hong Kong appearing to attain the most functional innovation system with a competitive selection environment and high comparative advantage in this field. We propose this methodology as a means to explore the scientific infrastructure of a specific sector, thereby acting as a precursor to forecasting potential technological spill-over and growth in specific sectors.

Imbibing Research Component in the Energy Systems Engineering Graduate Programme

Engineering education in unison with societal needs forms the bedrock to developmental activities and progress of human race. The transient nature of real world demands innovative solutions that makes it imperative for continuous knowledge exploration in science and technology. Engineering curriculum must sensitize graduates to be inquisitive to evolve solutions through application of their domain knowledge and exploration of new frontiers. Engineering research involves a systematic investigative approach to enhance the knowledge domain directed towards solution of existing problems. The research at graduate schools can be categorized as Basic research and Applied research depending on whether it establishes the proof of concept or delivers new processes, products or techniques. Government of India has initiated several measures for import substitution and indigenous technology development through financial assistance to research activities at academic institutions and industry. The graduate programme in Energy Systems Engineering with focus on renewable energy conversion has taken initiatives to imbibe research component into its curriculum. The theory courses in the programme have adopted a component that gives an exposure to the research trends in the respective areas through review of research articles. The project work course during the second year of the programme was meticulously designed to provide a mechanism that generated interest to pursue research activities. The periodic assessment through well-defined rubrics to incorporate the good mix of experimentation and computation segments helped in better execution of the project work. The strategy encouraged use of open source hardware tools like Raspberry Pi and Arduino along with software tools like Scilab and Open-foam in the project courses. This work summarizes instillation of research component for attainment of the Graduate Attributes PO4, PO5, PO6 and PO8 through execution of project work at different levels of the Programme. The results have shown that experiential learning strategy in project work has brought a positive change in the learning styles of students indicating their enthusiastic contributions.

Performance and progress of OIC countries towards building technology development capacity

This study evaluates the technology development capacity of 21 Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) countries based on technology achievement index. The state of four fundamental contributors of technology development capacity, i.e. technology creation, diffusion of old technologies, diffusion of recent technologies and development of human skills, essential for indigenous technology development or/and technology transfer and adaptation is studied for each of the 21 OIC countries. Each fundamental factor is represented by two indicators. Achievement gap, comparing with the highest achiever, has been calculated for all the countries. Based on the achievement gap analysis, progress of each country during the five-year period (2009-2014) in building technology development capacity has been assessed. Strong and weak areas have been mentioned for some selected countries. Technology development capacity and achievement gap analysis of individual countries present useful information for the policy makers and planners of the relevant countries to formulate appropriate policies and programmes for enhancing national capacity for technology development.

Attaining a productive structure for technology: The Bayh–Dole effect on university–industry–government relations in developing economy

This paper attempts to provide a systematic assessment of the ‘Bayh–Dole’ effect on the university–industry–government structures of Malaysia, a developing economy, from a quantitative dimension, in order to provide policy-makers with the central aspects of structural change. This paper takes account of those studies which question the significance of university patenting from the perspective of quality and utility. We observe widespread endogenization of university patenting and co-patenting processes in indigenous technology development cycles after the passage of Bayh–Dole-type legislation. The basic research supports and subsequent provisions of Bayh–Dole-type legislation provide us with the implications of strategic policy in attaining a productive network structure for technological innovations. We consider the importance of Bayh–Dole-type legislation in routinizing university research with regard to potential commercial values or applications. Thus, we break new ground in considering what the passage of such legislation actually achieves in a developing economy.

ICT standardisation strategies and interactive learning spaces - the case of China

The challenges posed by intellectual property rights (IPR) in terms of licensing fees have stimulated China's active participation in the standardisation of information and communication technologies (ICTs) through standards development organisations (SDOs). This participation allowed the accumulation of knowledge, the assimilation of external information and the development of new indigenous technologies. The Chinese experience shows that SDOs can be considered as interactive learning spaces (ILS). This case contrasts with that of other global ICT standards producers, where learning is a secondary outcome of the standardisation process.

Development of Indigeneous Engineering and Technology in Nigeria for Sustainable Development Through Promotion of Smes (Case of Design of Manually Operated Paper Recycling Plant)

Existence of small and medium scale businesses are essential to the growth and sustenance of any economy. SMEs serve as propellant to the development of large existing industries. Nevertheless, the rate of failure of SMEs globally is alarming. Notable in Nigeria as a case, the economy is suffering from structural defects and remains a consumer economy as a result of failure of indigenous engineering personnel to understand and take the lead role to process and utilize abundant natural resources for industrial development of the country. This paper presents an overview of development of indigenous technology in Nigeria through promotion of engineering based SMEs as a capacity building strategy for sustainable development and poverty alleviation. It is concluded that in order to achieve meaningful economic development and sustenance in developing nations like Nigeria, application of indigenous technology through promotion of engineering based SMEs should be considered. Also increase awareness among the public, policy maker and industrialist on the pivotal role of science and technology plays in national development.

An International History of the Brazilian–Argentine Rapprochement

The establishment of political channels that allowed long-standing rivals Brazil and Argentina to pursue co-operation in the nuclear realm is commonly attributed to the work of civilian Presidents José Sarney and Raúl Alfonsín as well as to the re-establishment of democratic regimes in both countries in the 1980s. Nevertheless, archival research, recently declassified documents, and oral-history interviews confirm the hypothesis that these efforts actually date back to the 1960s. The initiative gained momentum in the 1970s with the settlement of the Itaipu-Corpus dispute over common freshwater resources and joint opposition to the United States’ non-proliferation policy. This article addresses the process which led to the establishment of stable forms of co-operation between Brazil and Argentina in the nuclear realm. It explores four different strategies adopted by each country in order to obtain access to nuclear technology and exert regional leadership: alignment with the United States (thereby relinquishing nuclear autonomy); establishment of strategic partnerships with alternative Western powers; development of indigenous technology through secret programmes; and bilateral co-operation at the regional level. The international context, domestic factors, and personal attitudes are taken into account with the aim of providing a comprehensive analysis of co-operation and trust-building processes in a non-Western setting.

Foreign Firms and Indigenous Technology Development in the People's Republic of China

The People's Republic of China (PRC) is currently promoting indigenous technology development through support of Chinese firms and, arguably, by restricting operations of foreign multinational firms. This policy seems to overlook the impact of foreign firms on technology development in local firms. For instance, technology might leak out to local firms though spillovers. Moreover, competition from foreign firms might force local firms to engage in technology development. We examine the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on technology development in the PRC. We start by surveying a large and growing literature on FDI and spillovers in the country. Most previous studies find evidence of positive spillovers. We then continue to examine the effect of FDI on competition in the Chinese manufacturing sector and the effect of competition on firms’ research and development (R&D). Our analysis is conducted on a large dataset including all large- and medium-sized Chinese firms over the period 1998–2004. Our results show that FDI increases competition but there are no strong indications of competition affecting investments in R&D.

Analysis of Training Needs of Extension Agents on Climate Change Issues in Ekiti State Agricultural Development Project (EKSADP), Nigeria

The study specifically examined tasks performed by extension agents in the EKSADP as related to climate change and the task areas in which they needed further training. Using structured questionnaire, data were collected from thirty three (33) randomly selected extension agents in the two agricultural zones of Ekiti State. The major tasks performed by the extension agents on climate change related issues were educating farmers on pest control (90.9%), rendering of technical advice to farmers (84.8%), establishment of SPAT to monitor climate change impacts (81.8%) and indigenous technology development to mitigate climate change impacts (81.8%). The training needs in the following areas as perceived by the extension agents were weather forecast skills on climate change ( x =3.76), pest control skills to reduce pest attack ( x =3.72), soil conservation skills to reduce evapo-transpiration ( x =3.58), programme planning on climate change issues ( x =3.45), agro-chemical skills to reduce weed growth ( x =3.36), indigenous technology development for mitigating climate change impacts ( x =3.30), use of cultural practices to mitigate climate change impacts ( x =3.27), use of information communication technologies (ICTs) for awareness creation on climate risk management ( x =3.21) and statistical analysis of field data on climate change issues ( x =3.03). In order to improve performance and increase awareness on climate change impacts on agriculture, extension staff in the various agricultural organizations in the country needed to be trained and re-trained in the relevant areas.